Pumpkin Head, or What People Will Do For Halloween

(This was originally posted at WordPress before we moved to Blogger)

This mod was created by a fan of the computer game "Fate", for Halloween.

When Fantasy Art Meets Fantasy Roleplaying - Why Mialee Has So Many Pockets

(This was originally posted at WordPress before we moved to Blogger)

Hi Everyone!

As you know, my website, Fantasy Art and Portraits, is focussed on the fantasy art of computer games. So you can imagine that I often run into tons of great art… but “can’t” use it. Here’s a sample from the roleplaying game, Dungeons and Dragons, specifically their 3rd Edition Player's Handbook.

They've always had sample characters that you can play using their rules, but this wasn't emphasized as much until the radical re-design that was 3rd Edition. Starting with the 3rd Edition, every type of character and race had an "iconic" character that exemplified or stereotyped the race (dwarf? elf?) and "character class" or career (bard? wizard?).

Where character concept and rules met, sometimes awkwardly, was in the art. From time to time, they had to reflect certain quirks about the rules, such as wizards requiring assorted ingredients in order to cast their spells. So what to do if you're a wizard and you know a score of spells, and need maybe as much in spell ingredients -- different ingredients -- that were often used up each time you cast the spell, so you also needed several of them?

The answer... pockets.

The Fantasy Art of Dungeons and *DRAGONS*

(This was originally posted at WordPress before we moved to Blogger)

Hi Everyone!

As you know, my website, Fantasy Art and Portraits, is focussed on the fantasy art of computer games. So you can imagine that I often run into tons of great art... but "can't" use it. Here's a sample from the roleplaying game, Dungeons and Dragons, specifically their 3rd Edition Monster Manual.

You'll notice the "unimaginative" names of the dragons. This is in part practical, and in part D&D world setting: In the D&D mythology, developed over many, many, editions and setting spin-offs, "chromatic" or colour dragons (red, blue, green...) were "evil" and "metallic" or metal-colour dragons (gold, silver, bronze...) were "good". This scheme appears the most enduring (perhaps boosted considerably during the immense popularity of the Dragonlance novels and subsequent sequels and spinoffs). There were others, such as "gemstone" dragons that were "neutral" and had psychic/mental powers, but those have failed to become canon.

Click on the images below to go to the Monster Manual gallery. From there, you can navigate out to their full gallery. Earlier stuff from pre-Wizards-of-the-Coast D&D isn't available on the site. If I have some time, I'll try to dig it out from the web and put it in another blog post.

Enjoy!

WASP #3 - Armament of Poseidon - The Fantasy Art of Titan Quest

(This was originally posted at WordPress before we moved to Blogger)

Wednesday Art Showcase Presents: The Fantasy Art of Titan Quest







Click image for full-size image at Flickr. Link to Flickr is mandatory per Flickr terms of use. All images are copyrighted by their respective owners.


Fantasy Art and Portraits: A showcase of the fantasy art of computer games

WASP #2 - The Fantasy Art of Season Match

(This was originally posted at WordPress before we moved to Blogger)

Wednesday Art Showcase Presents: The Fantasy Art of Season Match

Fantasy Art and Portraits: A showcase of the fantasy art of computer games





Click image for full-size image at Flickr. Link to Flickr is mandatory per Flickr terms of use. All images are copyrighted by their respective owners.

Titan Quest - Freeing the Camera

(This was originally posted at WordPress before we moved to Blogger)

Hi Everyone!

I played around more with releasing the camera constraints on Titan Quest to take a few fantasy art shots of Titan Quest's pseudo-Eqypt for my friend Mercedes Jones (who's into bellydancing). While the art is beautiful, I think non-gamers will be profoundly disappointed.

Titan Quest made certain camera constraints for many reasons, not the least being what was practical for a game, and what wouldn't cripple game performance due to higher processing requirements. Once these camera constraints are released, the "shortcuts" taken in environment design become painfully obvious. There is no roof or sky ever displayed, for example. Go to my Titan Quest gallery page for more of a discussion and some images that show you what you weren't meant to see.

To get a mod that releases camera constraints (and also includes a document on how to do it yourself), try this link. Freeing the camera lets you take nice close-ups, showing some of the fine detail on the items in the game -- Like the green leaves on the wreath in this shot: (click for full-size picture)

WASP 1 - Alexander's Panoply - The Fantasy Art of Titan Quest

(This was originally posted at WordPress before we moved to Blogger)

Wednesday Art Showcase Presents - The Fantasy Art of Titan Quest





Click image for full-size image at Flickr. Link to Flickr is mandatory per Flickr terms of use.

All images are copyrighted by their respective owners.

Fantasy Art and Portraits: A showcase of the fantasy art of computer games